I’ve always seen myself as a student trying to get to the bottom of things. A good day for me is one where I go to sleep knowing a little more than I woke up knowing in the morning. So when I’m deciding how to spend my time, I usually ask myself three questions: Will I have fun? Will I make a difference? And will I learn something?
My new Netflix series, What’s next? The future with Bill Gateswas published today. And when I think back to the work of the last two years, the answer to all three questions is a clear “yes.”
I had a great time with the super talented director Morgan Neville. Morgan made one of my favorite documentaries, Best of Enemieswhich is about the debates between Gore Vidal and William Buckley during the 1968 US presidential election. Morgan also won an Oscar for his great film 20 feet from fame.
As you might guess from the title, What’s next? is a show about the future. I’m very fortunate to be able to work on a number of interesting problems. Between my fight to reduce inequality through the Gates Foundation, my leadership of Breakthrough Energy’s work on the climate crisis, and my ongoing involvement at Microsoft, I have first-hand experience of some of the biggest challenges we face today.
I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to work with and learn from some truly incredible people during the production of this show. (I hesitate to even use the word “work” because the process was so much fun!) I hope people watch What’s next? and I feel like they are accompanying me on my learning journey.
Each episode focuses on a different challenge: artificial intelligence, climate change, misinformation, disease eradication, and income inequality. I met with some of the great thinkers and innovators driving progress. Some of them have different ideas than me about how to tackle these challenges, and I loved hearing their perspectives. It was an eye-opening experience.
I was able to have on-camera conversations with familiar faces like Dr. Anthony Fauci, Open AI co-founder Greg Brockman, and groundbreaking director James Cameron. And I also made many new friends—including a brilliant malaria researcher from Burkina Faso named Abdoulaye Diabaté, young climate activists who impressed me with their intelligence and passion, and an amazing group of people from across the Bay Area who have overcome tremendous adversity on their journey from poverty to stability.
Dozens of people have also contributed to the series with one-on-one interviews, including my friend Bono and the brilliant Mark Cuban. Each of them offers an inspiring and informed perspective on the challenges we face. I hope that together we can combat the doomsday narratives that so often surround these issues.
It’s hard to say which discussion I learned the most from, but three conversations will always stick in my mind: those with Lady Gaga, Senator Bernie Sanders, and my younger daughter Phoebe.
On the way to madness
I couldn’t help but be a little nervous.
I was in Palm Desert, California, preparing for a filmed conversation with Lady Gaga for our episode about misinformation. I don’t normally mind being around famous people. But I’m a big fan of A star is born– especially music – and I was aware of her reputation as a great personality. I couldn’t wait to hear what she had to say.
Thankfully, I had no reason to worry. I was blown away by how thoughtful Gaga was. She made me laugh with the outrageous stories of how she had been a victim of misinformation in the past – and some of her views on the subject inspired me.
In the early years of her career, one of the most persistent Internet rumors about Gaga was that she was actually a man. It became so widespread that reporters asked about it in interviews. She refused to confirm or deny it. Instead, Gaga turned the tables and asked, “Would it matter if I was?”
The day of our Netflix conversation, I had been filming with my two sisters, Kristi and Libby, so I asked them to come over and watch the conversation between Lady Gaga and me.
We all hoped that this picture would make us cooler in the eyes of our children!
Lady Gaga had a great perspective on the intersection of information and entertainment and the need to bring humanity back into face-to-face interactions in the internet age. Our conversation was valuable and helped me think about what is possible (and what isn’t) when it comes to preventing misinformation.
Our conversation began before the cameras even started rolling.
I’ve always loved Gaga’s music (including her new song!), but I’ve come to appreciate her insight as an artist. She has such interesting and insightful things to say about her art, her audience, and the way she can make a difference. I’m grateful to have been able to spend time with her.
Unexpected bedfellows
When I emailed Senator Bernie Sanders to ask if he would sit down with me for the episode on income inequality, I didn’t expect a response for a while, so I was surprised and delighted when I got an immediate message from him:
Bill – That sounds fun. Let’s do it.
– Bernie
Sent from my iPad
Several of my friends raised their eyebrows when I told them I was going to meet him. After all, Senator Sanders is the first U.S. Senator in history to publicly state that there should be no billionaires. How would that discussion go?
It was not the first time I had met the Senator. In the past, I had found him to be quite approachable. I knew that we shared views on many issues. We had briefly discussed the climate crisis, but we had never had a longer conversation – and certainly not about income inequality.
Our meeting for the series took place on a sunny afternoon last September in a nondescript row house in Washington, D.C. When I arrived first, I went through my notes and thought about what the senator might say to me.
Minutes later, I heard the front door open and a deep voice yell my name. The Senator quickly came up the stairs to give me a warm handshake.
Senator Sanders immediately put me at ease. He gave me a signed copy of his latest book. And I appreciated his efficiency when he immediately turned to the director and asked, “Okay, shall we continue this on camera?”
I admire Bernie’s clear stance on these issues.
Bernie asked me some tough questions about how much wealth I thought would be enough. We agreed that rich people should be taxed more. I asked him if he had any legislation planned to make this a reality. It was a great discussion.
After filming was finished, we both had other appointments in Washington, so we walked down the stairs together and out to our waiting cars.
On the sidewalk, a passing jogger saw Senator Sanders and yelled, “Bernie!” Then he noticed me, did a double take, and yelled, “Holy shit, Bill Gates!” That made us both laugh. I guess we were an unexpected duo.
Proud dad
As much fun as filming with Lady Gaga and Senator Sanders was, my favorite interview for the series took place last fall in New York City with my daughter Phoebe.
I had some reservations about asking her to be on the show for a number of reasons.
Firstly, I have two other wonderful children and I wanted to see if any of them wanted to be on the show. They were happy to let Phoebe have the spotlight.
Secondly, we had to film during Phoebe’s senior year of college. She was very busy not only finishing her degree but also starting her own business and speaking at the Foundation’s Goalkeepers event later that same week.
I’m glad it worked out, though, because our conversation—for the episode on misinformation—turned out to be the highlight of the series.
In addition to running her own company, Phoebe is also an incredible advocate for women’s rights and health. She regularly meets with other activists, many of whom have suffered horrific online harassment. She told me specific examples of how bad actors use misinformation and disinformation to hinder progress.
Phoebe helped me better understand how women online—especially women who advocate for other women—often face threats to their safety designed to make them think twice before speaking out. I’m not exactly a stranger to people being mean to me online, but I have the luxury of (largely) ignoring what’s being said about me. Phoebe explained how these threats can have a chilling effect on women’s rights activists and shared some thoughtful ideas on how to make the internet safer for everyone.
I am so proud of how Phoebe uses her voice to advocate for the rights of women and girls.
Few people in your life can be as direct with you as your own children. Phoebe and I talked about what it’s like growing up with social media, how to use it smartly, how not to give in to trolls, how to get other perspectives, and the important lesson (at least for me) that no one uses Facebook or email anymore.
One of my favorite moments was when she told me never to email her. When I asked her why not, she said, “Nobody uses email for personal communication anymore. Just text me.”
I finally met her halfway. I now text her to let her know I’m sending her an email. And we even talk on the phone more often. I can’t wait to see how her advocacy will change the world – and to hear what she thinks of What’s next? now that it’s out.
My goal with the show is to inspire more people to talk about these important issues. The human situation has improved dramatically in the last few hundred years. There is no doubt that scary things are happening, and it feels like change is happening fast. But we shouldn’t underestimate what happens when people work together and focus on a problem. I’m confident that brilliant people – especially young people – will come up with great solutions.
The key is to confront the issues. They are simply too important to just become pessimistic or bury our heads in the sand. These are global issues and we should be talking to each other about them. It is a critical time, but if we engage, there is a path to progress.
I hope you like it What’s next?.
